On July 19, it was noted that at the Vung Tau - Can Gio ferry terminal in Ben Da area (Vung Tau ward, Ho Chi Minh City), there were quite a lot of vehicles waiting to board the ferry to Can Gio, going to Ho Chi Minh City.
Mr. Lam (16-seat bus driver) said that this was the second time he took the Vung Tau - Can Gio ferry route to bring passengers to Ho Chi Minh City. The cost of a ferry trip is 450,000 VND for a 16-seat vehicle not including passengers.
"In my opinion, this is the fastest route possible at the moment. The last time, it only took me about 3 hours to get to Ho Chi Minh City, while going in the direction of National Highway 51 and turning into other routes, it took me 7-8 hours," said Mr. Lam.
According to Mr. Lam, in addition to the Vung Tau - Can Gio ferry, they also have to cross the Binh Khanh ferry route with a cost of 70,000 VND/trip for 16-seat vehicles to get to Ho Chi Minh City. Through the agreement, customers also agreed to support this additional cost to shorten time, instead of spending more time on other routes.
Mr. Nguyen Tan Trung - a vehicle driver - said that because he saw information about traffic congestion on other routes, he chose a ferry route to Ho Chi Minh City, then to Can Tho.
"The cost is high but I still have to choose this route to save time. In my opinion, if the cost is reduced appropriately, the ferry route will be supported even more at the present time," said Mr. Trung.
According to Quoc Chanh Company Limited - the operator of the Vung Tau - Can Gio ferry route, due to the high demand for travel, it has been operating continuously to serve passengers.
"Normally, the ferry departs according to the schedule, but if the vehicles are full, it can depart earlier to increase the number of trips and serve more passengers. At the same time, the ferry is currently operating all days of the week," said a company representative in Vung Tau.
According to the Ho Chi Minh City Inland Waterway Port Authority, the number of passengers has increased in recent days; and the ferry operator has also increased trips to ensure passenger service. Currently, the ferry route is safe to operate, and there are no incidents of congestion or traffic jams.
